23/06/2005 | News
"NATO and the Council of Europe have no elaborate formal relationship, but these two organisations aspire to consolidate Europe as a common space that is both free and secure," declared Jaap de Hoop Scheffer before the Parliamentary Assembly this afternoon. The NATO Secretary General then talked about the situation in the Balkans, and pointed out that force had been necessary to restore peace and lead these countries towards an integrated Europe. Thanks to its presence in the Balkans, he said, NATO had now created the conditions of security that enabled other institutions to work towards reconstruction and reconciliation.
22/06/2005 | Session
The Parliamentary Assembly this morning debated Russia’s honouring of its obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe. The voting on some 35 amendments will be broadcast live over the web from 3 p.m., French time, with a final vote expected at around 4.15 p.m. Earlier, at 1 p.m., the co-rapporteurs Rudolf Bindig (Germany, SOC) and David Atkinson (United Kingdom, EDG) will give a press conference in Room 1 of the Palais de l’Europe, also broadcast live.
22/06/2005 | News
Speaking about the strengthening of the partnership between the Council of Europe and the EU and the OSCE, decided on the occasion of the last CoE Summit, the Chairperson of the Committee of Ministers, Diogo Freitas do Amaral, today announced to the PACE that "the drafting of the memorandum of understanding to be proposed for signature by the CoE and the EU will be one of our main priorities". According to the Minister, the Assembly will have "a leading role to play in establishing closer ties between Strasbourg and Brussels, in particular through its contacts with the European Parliament, but also through its own discussions such as its work on the implications of the EU’s neighbourhood policy for the Council of Europe".
22/06/2005 | News
"Continue to build bridges between the peoples of Europe. Continue to promote the European idea, because Europe is much more than money and the economy. Continue to build a citizens' Europe", said PACE President René van der Linden at this afternoon's ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Europe Prize. Participants included the mayors of the prize-winning towns of Tübingen (Germany) and Santiago de Compostela (Spain). The Europe Prize, created by the Assembly in 1955, is the highest distinction awarded to local authorities for their European action.
22/06/2005 | Session
PACE today urged Russia to improve its democracy, calling for more power for the Russian parliament, pluralist and impartial broadcasting and normal conditions for civil society. In a reference to the reforms of Autumn 2004, the Assembly declared: “In order for democracy to function properly, power must not only be vertically reinforced but also horizontally shared.” While acknowledging that the authorities had to deal with serious problems which threatened the country – such as terrorism, corruption or irregular privatisations which led to oligarchic control – the parliamentarians said the solutions, even if adapted to Russia’s realities, should be in line with Council of Europe principles.
22/06/2005 | News
The Assembly today called on the Azerbaijani authorities and opposition to recognise the importance of the November 2005 parliamentary elections for the democratic future of the country and publicly and officially commit themselves to non-violence and respect for basic human rights. Following a debate on the functioning of democratic institutions in Azerbaijan, the parliamentarians urged the authorities to pursue in practice some positive recent steps such as the Presidential decree on the guarantees for democratic elections, the creation of public service broadcasting and the first modest attempts at political dialogue between the ruling parties and the opposition. Regarding the follow-up to Assembly Resolution 1359 on political prisoners in Azerbaijan, the parliamentarians called on the authorities to continue a constructive dialogue with the Assembly in order to find a speedy and permanent solution to the issue of political prisoners and presumed political prisoners.
21/06/2005 | News
The Assembly today welcomed the "record number of investment projects" carried out by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in its 27 countries of operation, including Russia, and pointed out that economic growth in the transition countries covered by the Bank is consistently higher than the world average, albeit with important regional differences. The Assembly acts as a parliamentary forum for the Bank, holding annual debates on its activities.
21/06/2005 | News
RVDL Chaudry Amir Hussain José de Venecia AAPP Asia
21/06/2005 | News
PACE President René van der Linden today welcomed an important delegation representing the Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace stressing that the decision of the AAPP to create an Asian Parliamentary Assembly within the next 5 years, modelled on the Parliamentary Assembly, was an impressive tribute to the PACE's work. "As I said in April when addressing the Senior Advisory Council of the AAPP in Manila, of course an Asian mechanism should reflect Asia’s own historic experience and political, social and economic realities. But the values at the heart of any such initiative are universal and they apply to our European, as well as to Asian, societies," he said.
21/06/2005 | News
"Within a year of its accession to the Council of Europe, Bosnia and Herzegovina fulfilled almost all major formal commitments. We hope you will show the same determination in implementing the adopted legislation and all Council of Europe standards," PACE President René van der Linden said today in his welcoming address to Adnan Terzic, Prime Minister of Bosnia-Herzegovina. "The recent increase in the number of voluntary surrenders and transfers of indictees from Bosnia and Herzegovina to the ICTY is to be welcomed. The Council of Europe and this Assembly urges you to continue cooperation with the ICTY to ensure that all indictees that continue to evade international justice are brought before the tribunal. The way towards the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina goes through The Hague," he added.
21/06/2005 | News
René van der Linden made the following statement at the opening of an exhibition at the Council of Europe on “Jews, Christians, Muslims, Peace … Today”, organised by the Association Accord et Fugue under the auspices of the Fondation Saint Thomas: "Meeting in Warsaw a month ago, the Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe member states made the following statement: 'We shall foster European identity and unity, based on shared fundamental values, respect for our common heritage and cultural diversity. We are resolved to ensure that our diversity becomes a source of mutual enrichment, inter alia by fostering political, intercultural and inter-religious dialogue.' With its Abrahamic title, I feel that the exhibition we are now discovering forms part of this dialogue and therefore reflects one of our priorities. Thank you for sharing these works with us, parliamentarians of 46 European states, from the Jewish, Christian, Muslim and other faiths."
21/06/2005 | News
The present undecided status of Kosovo casts uncertainty over the further political stabilisation of the entire region, including its perspectives of European integration and economic recovery. As regards the determination of Kosovo’s future status, PACE today called on the Government of Serbia and Montenegro, the political forces of Kosovo Serbs and other minorities, the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government and Kosovo Albanian political parties “to engage in a genuine dialogue with a view to reaching a peaceful and mutually acceptable solution which requires concessions from both sides”. The Assembly asked the Committee of Ministers “to support the role of the Council of Europe as a facilitator of political dialogue between the parties concerned, in preparation of status talks”.